Over 100 teams of architects and landscape architects across Australia entered the design competition, which was judged by a jury that included independent experts and a member of council staff with experience in architecture and urban/landscape design.

The competitors were asked to submit designs that considered community feedback on the area, including the desire for a new community centre, better access, enhanced green space with more recreational opportunities and an area that would be activated day and night.

The winning design will maximise the potential of Griffith Park and bring improved facilities, enhanced green space and more recreational activities. Collins and Turner, Jane Irwin Landscape Architecture and WSP Indigenous Specialist Services will now go on to finalise their designs for the community centre and a revitalised Griffith Park.

IN THE ARCHITECTS' WORDS: "Griffith Park knits into Bankstown centre's framework of streets and places to host diverse activities and opportunities - cultural and commercial, bringing the life of the street through the precinct.

A series of rills, pools, and wetlands structure the park, linking it to past connections to Salt Pan Creek and a strong First Nations heritage and identity.

The community centre forms a soft welcoming southern edge. Spaces for movement, gathering, meetings, and learning are unified beneath a dramatic sweeping roof - a contemporary verandah conceived as a richly coloured three-dimensional tapestry, a celebration of one of Western Sydney’s most vibrant multicultural communities."

The Winner will provide the following designs:

• Designing now – New Community Centre and Park Upgrade
• Future opportunities – Griffith Park Precinct Plan

In 2020 Council undertook a Needs Analysis to help inform Council planning for the Griffith Park Precinct for the next 20 years. Through this process, the community had an opportunity to put forward their ideas for improvements to the park, streets, and community spaces. An analysis of the information received during this time revealed the following priorities for the Precinct:

• Increased and enhanced green open space and recreational opportunities for diverse users;
• New and improved facilities for a community and cultural precinct;
• Attractive, safe, and comfortable public domain for people to stay and enjoy;
• Improved access and mobility to, within, and through the Precinct, and
• Day and night activation

The development of the Griffith Park Precinct Plan and the new multipurpose community facility will deliver on these aspirations.

In June 2023 Council endorsed a two-stage design competition process for the Griffith Park Precinct. Stage One was an Expression of Interest (EOI) and Stage Two was a Design Response with the winner to be commissioned to deliver the detailed designs and construction drawings.

Here is further detail on the process:

• Stage 1A – Expression of Interest (EOI) Stage. Urban design and architectural specialists were invited to submit an open EOI.

• Stage 1B – Over 121 completed entries for the competition were received. Twenty-one (21) compliant submissions were received and reviewed by the Jury against the Stage One Evaluation Criteria that resulted in the following four Competition Teams being shortlisted by the Jury to progress to Stage Two (listed in numerical order):
  • Team 14 – Tonkin Zulaikha Greer, TCL, WSP Indigenous Specialist Services
  • Team 46 – ARM Architecture, JMD Design, WSP Indigenous Specialist Services
  • Team 62 – Sibling Architecture, ASPECT Studios
  • Team 99 – Collins and Turner, Jane Irwin Landscape Architecture, WSP Indigenous Specialist Services.

• Stage 2A – Design Response Stage. The four shortlisted Competition Teams prepared and submitted a Precinct Plan, including a concept design for a new multipurpose facility and associated public domain.

• Stage 2B – The jury reviewed and deliberated on the submissions and nominated Collins and Turner, Jane Irwin Landscape Architecture, WSP Indigenous Specialist Services as the winner for the design of the following:

• Community Centre and Park Upgrade (designing now)
• Griffith Park Precinct Plan (future opportunities)

The winning design will be on public exhibition on the following days:

Bankstown Library and Knowledge Centre: Tuesday 2 April 2024 to Monday 8 April 2024

Meet the project team: Thursday 4 April 2024 from 11.00am to 12.00pm at the Bankstown Library and Knowledge Centre

Bankstown Customer Service Centre: Tuesday 9 April 2024 to Friday 12 April 2024